Give Back

I have been lazing around at home quite often lately. My favourite past time is definitely watching Travel & Living. My mum insists that we don't subscribe too many channels... If not, why wouldn't I be glued to Fashion TV yea? But of course I love watching cuddly animals, unfamiliar cultures and magnificent landscapes in Animal Planet and Discovery Channel too. Honestly but sadly, the more I watch, the more loser I feel. 

You know, most of the times, these channels are trying to tell us a story. When you see the polar bears, we're not suppose to go "Awww how cute", but instead "Omg, they're dying because of global warming!". Or when they take a breath-taking view of the Amazon Forest and telling us how many hundreds and thousands of species call it their home, we're not suppose to scream "It's beautiful..", but instead again, we're suppose to feel remorseful that our nonsensical photocopying has caused extensive deforestation, which in turn costs many precious lives. Many of us seem to have forgotten that human lives are not the only lives in this world. 

Once I was watching a program about different food of different cultures. It featured the daily life of a fisherman's family in Vietnam-- how he catches his fishes-of-the-day and bringing them home so his daughter can cook Sour Fish for dinner. Such simplicity. However it struck me hard when the fisherman said as-a-matter-of-factly "I wish I can catch more fish today so I can earn more money." There, I was watching him. Watching his hard life for an entertainment because I was freakin' bored. Whereas on the other end, that was his livelihood, the only way to support his huge family. Perhaps he doesn't even has a clue that he is going to be watched by millions of 'richer' people, simply because he had not owned a television in his entire life.

Well, it's just my thought.

My apologies that this entry is rather solemn but it's important stuff. It concerns everyone and we all should do something. Anything, just something.

There are countless ways to save the Earth. Or if you found the word too strong, you could say 'make it a better place to live in'. I know the weather has been cranky these days, but it's precisely what we did that made things worse. 

It's a buffet, you overload your plate. 

You're full, you throw away the food. 

You're tired, you go to bed with the lights on.

It's hot, you blast the aircon. 

You feel damn good inside but the heat generated by that rattling machine is making the exterior hotter than ever. It's always a vicious cycle. The next time you ask why the sun is working so hard that day, think about what you did/ used yesterday. 

I'm no saint but I did my part by not using air-conditioning at night. Haha, I think my family is one of the rare few nowadays. I re-use papers for rough work. I don't click 'print' unnecessarily. I off the tap while applying shampoo. I'm glad I'm still doing them. =)

There's been loads more awareness created nowadays. Even if you are not the kind who does volunteer work, you can start perhaps by purchasing products for a cause?

• La Mer has embarked a charity drive to raise funds for Oceana, the global organisation for protecting the ocean (Ocean day is 8 June). You spoil the ocean, you lose your miracle broth! If you can some spare cash, head to Tangs Orchard and get yourself a limited edition 250ml Creme de La Mer. Proceeds will of course be used to fund the initiative. You don't have to volunteer to clean up the shore, just buy this miracle broth to pamper yourself.

• Heard of Voluntourism? The name says all. Is a win-win situation for traveller and the community being visited. Isn't it a beautiful idea to contribute back to the country that you are benefiting from? Visit VolunTourism.org for more. You can give back in terms of arts, culture, geography, heritage, natural environment etc. Angelina Jolie is doing it, so can you. 

• Now you can fly for good-- literally. Flyforgood.com is an online booking site that allows volunteers to enjoy up to 50% discount for airlines that support humanitarian volunteers. To qualify, just provide the name of the organisation and prove the affiliation upon check-in.

• Open your eyes, there are many beauty products that use only natural ingredients with no artificial chemicals. It's a way to be environment-friendly too.